Magister Scientiae (Physiotherapy) - MSc(Physio) / Introduction: A spinal cord injury is the damage to the spinal cord that alters functional independence. Two different systems of care for the management of health conditions are available in private and public care in South Africa. A better understanding of health and functioning of individuals in the two systems is crucial to help address inequality between the two systems. The aim of the study was to describe the health status and functioning of persons with traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) in the Western Cape province who received public-funded care compared with those in the Gauteng province who received private care. Methodology: The study entailed a cross-section comparison between a government-funded cohort in the Western Cape and a private cohort in Gauteng, two of the provinces of South Africa. Self-administered questionnaires and standardised outcome measures were used to collect the data and to ensure validity and reliability. Data were captured on Excel and then transferred to SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) for analysis. Ethical clearance to conduct the study was obtained from the Biomedical Research Ethics Committee of the University of the Western Cape.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) the goal of universal health coverage is to ensure that all people obtain the necessary health services without being financial limped because of the payable fees. This requires: - A strong, efficient, well-run health system; - A system for financing health services; - Access to essential medicines and technologies; and - A sufficient capacity of well-trained, motivated health workers. In an effort to compliment the abovementioned, the South African government proposed the National Health Insurance System (NHIS) to address the health inequality and to improve access to quality healthcare for its citizens. The National Department of Health (NDOH) has already consulted with several stakeholders since the launch of the NHI Green Paper in August 2011. Already 11 National Health Insurance (NHI) pilot sites have been established in the nine South African provinces to assess the feasibility, acceptability, effectiveness and affordability to engage the private healthcare sector. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of the NHI in South Africa as well as the way in which it could be implemented to be more acceptable to all stakeholders involved. A qualitative research approach was followed due to the nature of the study. Furthermore, an exploratory methodology was applied in order to generate hypotheses. The research design for this study included a literature review, participatory data collection, semi-structured interviews and data analysis. The study found that there is a need for NHI in South Africa. However, medical practitioners (also referred to as general practitioners or GPs further in the study) feel uncertain about the implementation progress which is unclear to them. Also evident is the, fear for loss of income should the NHI be implemented and thus the remuneration package remained a main concern for all. / MBA, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) the goal of universal health coverage is to ensure that all people obtain the necessary health services without being financial limped because of the payable fees. This requires: - A strong, efficient, well-run health system; - A system for financing health services; - Access to essential medicines and technologies; and - A sufficient capacity of well-trained, motivated health workers. In an effort to compliment the abovementioned, the South African government proposed the National Health Insurance System (NHIS) to address the health inequality and to improve access to quality healthcare for its citizens. The National Department of Health (NDOH) has already consulted with several stakeholders since the launch of the NHI Green Paper in August 2011. Already 11 National Health Insurance (NHI) pilot sites have been established in the nine South African provinces to assess the feasibility, acceptability, effectiveness and affordability to engage the private healthcare sector. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of the NHI in South Africa as well as the way in which it could be implemented to be more acceptable to all stakeholders involved. A qualitative research approach was followed due to the nature of the study. Furthermore, an exploratory methodology was applied in order to generate hypotheses. The research design for this study included a literature review, participatory data collection, semi-structured interviews and data analysis. The study found that there is a need for NHI in South Africa. However, medical practitioners (also referred to as general practitioners or GPs further in the study) feel uncertain about the implementation progress which is unclear to them. Also evident is the, fear for loss of income should the NHI be implemented and thus the remuneration package remained a main concern for all. / MBA, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Användandet av innovationsmodeller inom vårdsektorn studerades, med anledning av den innovationsmodell Sveriges Kommuner och Landsting nyligen tagit fram. Offentlig sektor har i litteraturgenomgångar inte tagits upp som positiva exempel på innovativ verksamhet, men det finns mycket litteratur som visar på hur systematiserade och byråkratiska de organisationerna är. Därför är det av intresse att undersöka hur en systematiserad organisation angriper innovationsarbete med hjälp av verktyg och modeller. Genom semistrukturerade intervjuer samlades data in från fem representanter inom den offentliga vårdsektorn (från två olika kommuner och landsting), och resultaten visade på att valet och användningssättet av innovationsmodeller skiljde sig mellan respondenterna. Vissa respondenter använde redan existerande modeller, medan andra skapade egna. Vidare visade resultatet att den modell Sveriges Kommuner och Landsting tagit fram ej användes av någon respondent, och endast två kände till att modellen fanns. Studien avslutas med en diskussion gällande innovationsmodellers nivå av generalisering respektive specialisering, samt förslag på en möjlig revidering av modellen Sveriges Kommuner och Landsting tagit fram, för att på så vis sprida vetskapen om den. / The use of models for innovation within the public healthcare sector were studied, due to the fact that the public agency The Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions, SALAR, recently developed and launched a model for innovation. The public sector has not been the focal point in any of the literature about innovative organizations, but there is no shortage of literature regarding that of bureaucracy and the systematization of work processes in the public sector. That is why the authors find it interesting to study how a systemized organization set about working innovatively using instruments and models. Through the use of semi-structured interviews with five representatives from the public healthcare sector, data was collected and the results showed that the choice and use of innovative models differed between the respondents. Some respondents used models that already exist, while others constructed their own. The results also showed that neither one of the respondents used the model created by SALAR, and only two of them had pre-existing knowledge of the model. The study is concluded with a discussion about the degree of generalization/specialization in innovative models, and a suggestion for a possible revision of SALAR’s model in order to create wider knowledge of it.